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Smart & Final promotes Scott Drew to COO

Veteran store operations executive named to newly created position

Russell Redman

June 12, 2020

2 Min Read
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Smart & Final operates 255 locations in California, Arizona and Nevada, including 197 Smart & Final Extra! larger-format stores and 58 legacy Smart & Final stores.Smart & Final

Grocery industry veteran Scott Drew has been elevated to chief operating officer at warehouse-style grocery chain Smart & Final.

The promotion is effective immediately, Commerce, Calif.-based Smart & Final said late yesterday. Drew previously served as executive vice president of operations, a role he has held since 2015.

As COO, a newly created position at the company, Drew will continue to report to Dave Hirz, president and CEO.

“Scott is a seasoned industry executive with proven leadership skills, which have benefited Smart & Final for the past 10 years,” Hirz said in a statement. “Scott’s management style is all about coaching his team and being a servant leader. One of his biggest focus areas is the development of high -potential leaders in order to build our bench and ensure Smart & Final’s continued success.”

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Drew (left) has been with Smart & Final since March 2010, when he joined the company as senior vice president of store operations. In various roles over that time span, he has led store operations, real estate, construction and maintenance, supply chain, and sales and merchandising. He also serves as chairman of Smart & Final Mexico, where the company has more than a dozen stores operated under a joint venture.

With more than 40 years in the retail grocery industry, Drew started his career in 1977 as a store courtesy clerk. He came to Smart & Final from The Kroger Co., where most recently he served as vice president of store operations for Kroger’s Central Division in Indianapolis, managing more than 150 stores in five states. 

Related:Smart & Final ushers in single-line queuing system for all stores

Smart & Final noted that Drew also serves on the board of several charities, including the Smart & Final Charitable Foundation, the Western Association of Food Chains and Olive Crest. He also is the president of the Food Industry Circle for City of Hope. And last year, he was named the executive-in-residence for the USC Marshall Food Industry Executive Program.

Overall, Smart & Final operates 255 locations in California, Arizona and Nevada, including 197 Smart & Final Extra! larger-format stores and 58 legacy Smart & Final stores.

About the Author

Russell Redman

Senior Editor
Supermarket News

Russell Redman has served as senior editor at Supermarket News since April 2018, his second tour with the publication. In his current role, he handles daily news coverage for the SN website and contributes news and features for the print magazine, as well as participates in special projects, podcasts and webinars and attends industry events. Russ joined SN from Racher Press Inc.’s Chain Drug Review and Mass Market Retailers magazines, where he served as desk/online editor for more than nine years, covering the food/drug/mass retail sector. 

Russell Redman’s more than 30 years of experience in journalism span a range of editorial manager, editor, reporter/writer and digital roles at a variety of publications and websites covering a breadth of industries, including retailing, pharmacy/health care, IT, digital home, financial technology, financial services, real estate/commercial property, pro audio/video and film. He started his career in 1989 as a local news reporter and editor, covering community news and politics in Long Island, N.Y. His background also includes an earlier stint at Supermarket News as center store editor and then financial editor in the mid-1990s. Russ holds a B.A. in journalism (minor in political science) from Hofstra University, where he also earned a certificate in digital/social media marketing in November 2016.

Russell Redman’s experience:

Supermarket News - Informa
Senior Editor 
April 2018 - present

Chain Drug Review/Mass Market Retailers - Racher Press
Desk/Online Editor 
Sept. 2008 - March 2018

CRN magazine - CMP Media
Managing Editor
May 2000 - June 2007

Bank Systems & Technology - Miller Freeman
Executive Editor/Managing Editor
Dec. 1996 - May 2000

Supermarket News - Fairchild Publications
Financial Editor/Associate Editor
April 1995 - Dec. 1996 

Shopping Centers Today Magazine - ICSC 
Desk Editor/Assistant Editor
Dec. 1992 - April 1995

Testa Communications
Assistant Editor/Contributing Editor (Music & Sound Retailer, Post, Producer, Sound & Communications and DJ Times magazines)
Jan. 1991 - Dec. 1992 

American Banker/Bond Buyer
Copy Editor
Oct. 1990 - Jan. 1991 

This Week newspaper - Chanry Communications
Reporter/Editor
May 1989 - July 1990

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